Speaking to Autocar at the show, a company spokesman said that the UK market was an important one for hot hatches and performance cars, and the success of the VXR brand meant that the Extreme will definitely be sold here.

The Extreme, based on an Astra VXR, is described as a track car for the road, and was influenced by the specification of the German OPC Cup race cars. It uses a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine with over 300bhp, hooked up to a manual six-speed gearbox. This, too, has been heavily modified, with different ratios and made from lighter, stronger materials.

Suspension on the Extreme is mechanically adjustable, as with the race cars, and the braking system uses six-piston Brembo calipers on 376mm discs at the front. Inside, the rear seats have been removed, and a roll cage fitted in their place, with six-point harnesses.

Between 50 and 300 Extremes will be built, depending on demand, with the production model likely to be launched at the Geneva show next year.

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Nice ! not a big fan of Vauxhall per se but we need more light performance cars like this that are more practical.Not so sure about the manual shift though.NO racing team is using anything but double clutch or sequential,move on chaps !

Nice ! not a big fan of Vauxhall per se but we need more light performance cars like this that are more practical.Not so sure about the manual shift though.NO racing team is using anything but double clutch or sequential,move on chaps !

But this isn't a car for racing, it's a car for the road, and the vast majority of enthusiasts want a manual. Thank you Vauxhall!
I still wouldn't be caught dead in an Astra though.